It’s so nice to reread the series and come across this cover again, because I always wondered if the layout of Mephy’s little pawns on his right hand was meaningful or just random/for the aesthetic.

However seeing the current arc, I’m almost sure that this was drawn like this on purpose, which makes it even better!

Look, look, first of all you’ve got Rin and Yukio facing each other and this could really be depicting how Yukio just left his brother and the Order to join the Illuminati, as well as the on-going conflict (mostly from Yukio’s perspective) that led to this decision.

Mephy was totally expecting such an event after all, he even deliberately worked for it, finally pushing Yukio to his limits in ch94.

However, as it is, Rin remains on the Order (or more simply remains Mephy’s trump card) while Yukio moved on to join Lucifer and the Illuminati.

Then Shiemi and Amaimon: starting with Shiemi on the cover of ch44, she’s on “Rin’s side”, as if supporting him, and then again it makes sense for several reasons.

Shiemi is the one (with Suguro) who warned Rin that something was really wrong with Yukio in the current arc.

In fact, she used to be closer to Yukio (knowing him for a longer time and all), but his inner conflict ever since the Kyoto arc led him to slowly get estranged from her while Rin grew closer to Shiemi instead.

This leads to why the current blossoming romance is Rin/Shiemi and not Yukio/Shiemi, despite Yukio and Shiemi having better odds at the beginning of the series (I want to expand on that but in another post about shipping in AnE in general once I’ve reread the whole series).

Another reason to “Shiemi being on Rin’s side” could be her own part of the current arc, since…

after finally admitting that she’s got feelings for him (~~and not Yukio, sorry my boy, long ago I was vouching for you guys~~), she’s taken by the Vatican for a matter that’s most likely related to Shemihaza.

So Shiemi is in love with Rin and also remains on the Order’s side, even if this is probably not as willingly as it appeared to be in ch99.2.

In fact, since she chose to drop becoming an exorcist after the talk with her mom and despite her initial wishes, it’s pretty clear that her character’s arc will have to address what she really wants for her future and, since we’ve established in different parts of the story that a part of the Order is rotten anyway, this will probably be related.

This is where Amaimon jumps in and again, the current arc might explain why he’s lurking behind Shiemi on the cover of ch44. Yeah, sure, Shiemi was his bride that he chose randomly to force Rin to attack him in an early arc, but lately…

it doesn’t seem to be such a random narrative (or related to Rin/Shiemi) choice after all.

The “Shiemi has a link to Shemihaza” theories have been going strong for a while now, with Shemihaza who was described to be “the emperor of creation”

while Amaimon is a Baal, but more precisely the King of Earth.

However, while Shemihaza was said to be a part of the Order along with Armumahel and Azazel, Amaimon considered himself to be neutral,

probably

only being involved so far in Mephy’s schemes because he owes his current vessel to Mephy.

And yet, this scene happened…

…which is giving me the feeling that either Shemihaza and Amaimon have a significant history or that Amaimon is pissed because maybe he shouldn’t have taken Shiemi in particular as his “bride” (I’d rather believe in the former though).

Nonetheless, I think we can safely expect Amaimon to be involved in Shiemi’s personal arc, whatever the reason for his outburst and anger was, and since both are related to Nature, I’m also wondering if we might not finally get another mention of the Garden of Amahara (maybe it was created by Amaimon and Shemihaza?). :))

Moving on, that leaves only Shura’s pawn on the cover of ch44, who’s in an interesting position since she’s backing up Yukio but at the same time facing Mephy. No surprise but there again, I think it’s related to the current arc.

First of all Mephy and Shura have this weird dynamic: she doesn’t trust him at all, but she plays by his rules when she knows it can’t be helped and he’s been edging her on down the road of becoming the #1 caretaker of the Okumura twins since 5ever. Please observe the development between ch34 and ch81:

What Mephy also did is that he made sure that the twins would be the ones who would solve the matter with Hachiro, which also helped Shura with moving on from Shiro…

…and which led to her saying something super important as a conclusion to her arc:

The reason it’s super relevant and interesting (and also the reason I believe it’s related to her position on the cover of ch44) is that Shura is also one of the few who can get Yukio to be 100% honest.

Sure, that led to them bickering all the time and Yukio saying that he always hated her, buuuut thanks to the Aomori arc, we know that’s far from being true.

Anyway, personally I had forgotten, but actually there was a time in AnE where Yukio was not full of angst (until he meets Todo), or so you could think because the truth is that he was just better at hiding everything behind his smiles, but anyway it never fooled Shura then…

and it’s still not fooling her.

So, now that Yukio completely broke down about everything…

…maybe Mephisto will give her an opportunity to go after him, or she’ll simply choose to go by herself. For now all she knows is that he escaped, she doesn’t know about the Illuminati yet, but when she finds out… she might just drop the Order (since she said she didn’t care) and chase after him, especially since the Illuminati also took what was left of Hachiro.

So she wouldn’t be on neither the Order’s side or the Illuminati’s: she’s on the twins’ side and she’s facing Mephy on the cover of ch44 because she knows he planned it all out and now she may have to go and try bringing Yukio back (whether Mephy offers his help/an opportunity or not though, we’ll see).

There you go! It’s all adding up, and obviously since it’s Mephy’s plan xD but I’m so happy Sensei went as far as to possibly plan it all out and leave little clues such as the cover of ch44. I just can’t wait to find out more. 😀

Sorry for the long post, it’s really a blast to reread the series!

The blue sect arc & UT: tying everything together?

I’m aware it’s my umpteenth recap post for this arc, but I’ve seen a lot of posts that are throwing UT’s characterization to the bushes after ch140 + I still can’t believe that this arc is as simple as it appears to be after almost 3 years of it, so here’s one more.

It’s nothing particularly new if you’ve been following my posts or reblogs on the topic for the past year, but less than the arc itself, I’m mostly going to focus on what possibly led to it. In fact if you read @frederickabberline‘s own recap post that is more recent, you will probably see where I’m going in general.

The reason I’m writing this post, despite possibly being proven wrong in a week or so, is because I’ve been into Kuroshitsuji for 6 or 7 years now, there are subplots everywhere that have been left hanging, and I refuse to stop believing that Sensei can craft a good story when she gave us arcs like the Campania or when she writes amazing characters.

Moving on, I’m just going to start with UT’s character:

‘Cause actually ch140 finally confirms that UT’s motivation in the story 100% revolves around the Phantomhive family

But that doesn’t mean that “bringing the twin back” was his only goal for the last 4 years.

Because not only would that imply UT gives 0 shit about our!Ciel selling his soul to a demon and that is so not true

but also because that’d create some inconsistencies with what we’ve seen of his character so far, since bringing back the twin or Ciel’s contract aren’t just what’s on UT’s mind.

I mean, guys, if UT’s motivation centers around the P family, wouldn’t you say that a little something might be linked to his issues with losing so many of them?

And he did express some concerns about our!Ciel too on this matter:

In other words UT most likely has at least 3 goals:

bringing back the dead Phantomhives (for now it’s just the twin though, because Vincent’s body is too damaged and we don’t know about Claudia) => something that’s for his own sake
saving Ciel’s soul from the contract => something that he put on hold despite almost killing Seb during the Campania arc, because Seb can be useful to protect our!Ciel against a more urgent matter, that is…
saving Ciel from the Watchdog duty/Victoria => because in just one year Ciel already did too many mistakes that most likely will end up costing him, like it most likely cost his predecessors.

you could also see this as UT wanting revenge against Victoria because of Vincent and Claudia, it’s the same.

It’s simple logic: if the Watchdog duty is responsible for taking the Phantomhives away from UT, then that explains why UT literally said he was no big fan of Victoria, especially if he believes she deliberately led Ciel’s predecessor(s) to their death. Thus trying to take Seb down can wait because…

…he can be useful to protect Ciel from whatever Victoria/Brown may plan as punishment (the Murders at manor arc being just a preview).

I’m aware that, currently, what’s super hard to decipher about UT’s character is how he sees what’s left of the P family, but I think that’s precisely what this arc is also supposed to establish, mainly through Othello’s introduction (so we might get more insights into UT’s character and backstory, which is always helpful) but also possibly through whatever will happen to Lizzie (since establishing if UT gives a damn about the Midfords would tell us what kind of obsession he has).

Until we get there though, what I wanted to insist on was the idea that personally I doubt that this super long arc is only supposed to focus on just one of UT’s goals (i.e bringing back the twin and why it’s a bad idea), because narratively speaking it’s weird and, for now, it seems to leave a lot of plot holes.

However, since I also think that taking Seb down is on hold for UT, because of more urgent matters, it means that perhaps this arc can also be about UT’s little grudge against Queen Victoria, even if indirectly, as a follow up to the Campania and Weston arcs on some aspects (I’ll expand on that in a minute).

What’s important to keep in mind is that the Bizarre Doll project originally comes from UT before his desertion wondering about if cinematic records could be edited.

Now we don’t know yet what the trigger was that led from curiosity about the CRs to thinking that maybe UT could bring back the dead if he experimented, but I’d bet on Claudia/Vincent/the twin’s death.

The whole point though is that UT would have probably needed backup, while in the early stages of experimentation: to get funds if needed, to get enough corpses, a way to make counterfeit records that he would then add to the corpses’, then a way to get those episodes he used in the Weston arc, etc.

And aside from support, he probably also needed a place to “store” the twin until he could finally manage to bring him back (so the body wouldn’t rot for example), since he saved his body 4 years ago.

So overall, I think that’s the whole point of him joining/using the Aurora society

or even striking a deal with these “eccentric fellows”.

Think about it: his goal was at least bringing back the twin, but in order to achieve this, he first needed to experiment on a lot of corpses and if he received support from “eccentric fellows”, then obviously those same guys would have wanted to see results => that’s the Campania arc.

There is a common theme tied with the Campania arc though, which was introduced in the arc previous to it: the upcoming war between at least Germany and England. Yes, it escaped no one (not even dear Victoria) that UT’s bizarre dolls would make amazing war weapons.

Anyway, UT got what he wanted from the Campania arc and he gave results to “these eccentric fellows”, as well as potential clients of theirs, using what was his first prototype of Bizarre Dolls (CR edited with counterfeit memories).

Then the Weston arc happened and it’s been 6 years, but I’m still wondering about why UT felt the need to be involved in the first place.
I mean, sure, because of the Aurora society he made BDs for the ones who were killed by the Prefect 4, but since he had already inserted them (or at least just Agares) back before Ciel even joined Weston, why did he feel the need to pretend being the Principal ever since the cricket match?

For the lulz? Maybe. To see how Agares would manage, since he was UT’s masterpiece at the time? Again, maybe, but he could have done that from afar.

Another explanation could also be that he knew why Ciel was sent to Weston…

…and becoming directly involved was his way to make sure that, this time, Ciel would tell the Queen about him and his second prototype of bizarre dolls (CR edited with “episodes” coming from the corpses’ longing for the future).

Weston was different from the Campania because the Campania was something Ciel decided to investigate on his own, so he had no report to make to the Queen. After Weston though, he just had no other choice but to tell the whole truth, which is

possibly

what UT was counting on…

especially if he knew about Victoria’s war plans and that she would be interested in such a technique.

Obviously, since UT most likely personally despises Victoria, I doubt he would be happy to help her with anything. However, if UT has a deal with those “eccentric fellows” and if those BDs he’s making are a business that “those eccentric fellows” intend on selling to the highest bidder for the upcoming war, then if he really wanted to thwart Victoria’s war plans, he could…

advertise these weapons to her enemies for example.

UT’s Bizarre Dolls might not even be the only weapons “those eccentric fellows” have to sell. For example, if we look at the current arc…

And Sieglinde confirmed that the Blue Sect definitely mastered the technique through probably experimenting and then “dialyzing” those old lords from the Parliament.

Obviously we don’t know yet how the blood transfusions even factor into how/when UT brought back the twin or who invented all those devices that Othello was sent to investigate (ch125), but all in all, what’s important is that…

…Victoria felt threatened when UT is definitely involved again.

As it is right now, there is a lot we don’t quite get yet about the current arc so I only want to mention that maybe there is a difference between “bringing the twin back” and “being behind the blue sect” as far as UT is concerned in this arc.

Of course, it really does seem that the twin is at the heart of the Blue Sect…

…but why/when/how did UT create a whole sect surrounding something that’s so personal to him

when he had the twin’s corpse for 4 years

and he also said

? Especially when that sect initially seemed to be about researching blood transfusions? And when he also seems involved with “eccentric fellows”, according to the Campania arc? Couldn’t we tie everything somehow?

Everything from here onward is theoretical and just my opinion, but looking at what Othello said:

…who knows if “those eccentric fellows”/the Osiris company/the blue sect aren’t a group of humans working with several supernatural beings and experimenting with very advanced technology in different fields?

So an example of explanation for the current arc could be that:

UT initially struck a deal with “these eccentric fellows” in order to be able to experiment as much as he needed in order to make a perfect bizarre doll

because ultimately he wanted to bring (at least) the twin back
but also because at the same time all the other BDs he made to experiment could be sold and used as war weapons, thus allowing “these eccentric fellows” to make money off their deal

meanwhile, another part
of “those eccentric fellows” researched about blood transfusion

(with the help of another supernatural being who helped making those advanced devices?)

which led to them making money by “dialyzing” those old lords from the Parliament
but also possibly in order to eventually sell the technique to different armies for the upcoming war.

Then maybe, after the Weston arc, UT had the idea to combine these two (initially unrelated) methods, or “these eccentric fellows” wanted him to try, leading to the twin becoming “the blue star” and heart of Bravat’s blue sect, despite the fact that UT wanting the twin back is 100% personal.

I guess that’s when it leads to theories about what exactly Lizzie and Tanaka know about this arc, since I still don’t think Lizzie chose the twin’s side (or was crying about not being able to give her blood to real!Ciel in ch113) or that Tanaka just randomly expected the twin to come back one day.

Same for whatever UT meant in ch108 and what that liquid was (since I also don’t buy that he was able to get the twin’s soul back from Seb or whatever).

(I mean, why would it be “too early to awaken” when UT’s been working towards this goal for 4 years?)

Finally, UT being cornered into bringing back the twin as a part of another experiment by “these eccentric fellows” (instead of just on his own terms) could also explain the lack of control that he seems to have over the twin.

Bringing back the twin is something of personal significance for UT, however if Bravat’s sect represents another party that is involved with his revival, it could be that they revere the twin (and the other star lords) to the point that…

…they let this happened (by ‘this’ I mean the violence overall that took place in the town house).

Fair enough, UT probably does not care about Soma or Agni, but would he even want the twin to go this far in order to reach his brother? Sure the twin is dead and has no soul anymore but…

in general it seems UT isn’t pro-violence where the Phantomhives are concerned? I could be reading wayyy too much into this though.

…And it could be the same for Lizzie when you think about it, since she apparently gave some of her blood (at least once in ch112?) and could have been hurt way more than she was when she fought against Seb (ch117).

If UT is the mastermind behind this, then that just screams that he doesn’t care or just that he bet Seb wouldn’t kill Lizzie because Ciel wouldn’t forgive him (even though Lizzie is related to Claudia the same way the twins are).
However if the current arc is somehow divided between two parties (UT with his personal goal and Bravat’s sect) then that could explain why Lizzie ended up having some rough times despite her possible significance to UT.

TL;DR Lots of questions, lots of possible answers, lots of uncertainty, my only stance on this is that I doubt we’re just supposed to pile the current arc on top of the rest of the story without any link between the different parts (more than just the 2CT finally being confirmed I mean).

It’s a long arc, it’s a complex arc, it introduced the twin, addressed what happened 4 years ago but now it’s focusing on UT’s motivations too, so is it really just going to end like the Campania and Weston arcs when even those arcs still seem to have unanswered points?

I guess we’ll see on June 18th… Thanks for reading! Sorry it was so long. :3

kuchenackerman:

Eren pls… following his big bro’s steps

Source: kuchenackerman

What I Love About – Okumura Rin

azapofinspiration:

So the new anime and rereading the manga has reminded me how much I love this precious half-demon. Now I’m sharing it with you.

From the very first chapter, it establishes how nice Rin is.

Seriously, throughout the entire series we see that Rin is nicer than most of the humans he comes across.

Makes you wonder who the real monsters are. (Always a good theme to explore.)

He likes helping people.

Most of the times he gets in trouble it’s because he’s trying to help someone.

It’s unfortunate that his dad and brother never took the time to explore why he was getting into fights.

Anyway, his greatest desire is to help others, whether human, animal, or, nowadays, even demon.

I seriously love this which is why I’ve mentioned it like three times.

His kindness is his most attractive feature.

I love his stubbornness and his determination.

Trying to get him to change his mind is like trying to move a brick wall when you don’t have super strength.

How many times have we seen him say he’ll do something, people say he can’t do it, and then he does it anyway and it freaking works?

When he says something he freaking does it.

Rin keeps his promises.

Even with the situation with Shima, technically everything worked out like he said it would.

Promises are important to him.

He doesn’t really seem to hate other people. I mean, he clearly dislikes several people *cough* Amaimon *cough*, but truly hate? I think Satan’s the closest recipient of that.

Rin loves with everything he has.

It’s amazing to see how much he loves.

He loves his dad Shiro, his brother Yukio, his friends, Shiemi, Shura.

He gives these people everything he has and more.

Rin cares for people and wants to protect them all.

I love his relationship with Kuro. They’re a good match for friends and training partners.

I also love his relationship with Shura. She’s like the big sister he never had.

Though it’s complicated, and definitely needs improvement, I also like how he acts with Yukio.

He clearly admires Yukio without feeling jealous.

I’m jealous of how he doesn’t get jealous.

I love his optimism. Given what he’s been through, he has every right to be down, but he generally doesn’t let it.

Rin does get thoughtful and down though. Remember when he was imprisoned in the Kyoto Arc?

Actually it’s times like that where I worry about his mental state. He’s been through a lot of crap, and no one is really paying attention to protecting him emotionally/mentally.

Give him more hugs.

Actually, his self-sacrificing nature is a double-edge sword.

How many times has he straight up told people that he’s fine with them attacking or killing him if it made them feel better?

Get a self-preservation instinct, Rin.

I love how he still remembers to try to have fun.

I like how Rin takes pride in his cooking and is so awesome at it.

Rin also doesn’t seem to mind when he had to dress like a girl.

Seriously, he was pretty chill about the whole thing.

He’s seriously cute. Always.

He’s actually the mature one of the Okumura Twins.

Considering everything, he’s handled stuff pretty well.

Rin is really good at handling emotions. Both his own and others.

He can connect with people by equating his experiences with others’.

He’s also good at accepting how others feel. I made a post already about how he just accepted it when he thought his friends hated him and he also accepted Shiemi’s rejection and handled it really well.

He made it clear that he was fine with just being friends.

He tries hard not to let others’ make the same mistakes he did. That’s one of the things that pisses him off.

He’s strong physically and mentally.

He believes in the best of people.

Rin is one of the biggest sweethearts ever.

I love him. There’s probably more, but I cannot articulate it fully right now. Just give my precious half-demon hugs and don’t kill him.

@hotchocolatelover this is for you, friend :))

“Pointless”

Roma

Uta

Donato

Furuta

Gosh, not only did I just notice this, but I find that the words of both Itori and Nico, who are the only two Clowns we didn’t see fighting this time, are particularly meaningful to the parallel between the other Clowns.

Itori said…

As for Nico’s words…

– Hey,
there are only two ways for people to live.
To live beautifully, or to live for beautiful people.

– Is that so.
Then, what about people who do neither?

– My, that is simple.
They become mad and die.

;_; ~~my poor Clowns~~

Ciel: Babe, come over.
Lizzy: I can’t, I have fencing practice with mother today.
Ciel: My parents aren’t home.
Lizzy: Your parents are dead.

kurotheoryprompts:

Undertaker can’t bear to lose another Phantomhive.

Could he bear to lose Elizabeth? Frances or Edward Midford?

The problem with UT is that it’s hard to measure just how far he’s gone:

If bringing back the twin and wanting to bring back Vincent is generally related to him caring about the P family, because of whatever his relationship to Claudia was, then he might care about Frances and her children.

However if Vincent and the twins themselves are just a proxy for dead!Claudia to him, because he’s constantly reminded of her through them, then it’s not likely he gives a damn about them. (One possible hint of this would be his way to constantly refer to the 3 of them with the title “Earl”, which is genderless in Japanese and thus also means “Countess” I believe?)

The campania arc doesn’t help, except in assuming he only baited Seb with Ciel and didn’t mean to hurt Ciel, because “he knew Seb would protect him”, but that doesn’t mean the same goes for the Midford whose lives were in danger too.

TL;DR this arc will give us a definite answer since Lizzie is involved.

There is a possibility he might care if he really considers the entirety of Claudia’s family (even if he might have met Frances’ family less overall).
However if he’s Ann or Kelvin 3.0 then he might only see the twins as relevant (since Vincent can’t be brought back), because they’re who he clings onto, to be reminded of Claudia.

Edit: forgot to say but this is independent from all the UT = Cedric theories, because there is a bigger chance he might care about all of them if they’re actually related (even if I still think he probably wasn’t a good father figure if that’s the case).

earlgreyandco:

ciel: whatever you do act natural

seb: alright

resistsuffering:

Toyko Ghoul’s Uta. I just had fun with this one.

Source: resistsuffering

Kuzen’s Legacy

dreamofcentipedes:

I find it pretty awesome that Kuzen’s small act of defiance against V has sprouted into a full-fledged rebellion against them. By abandoning them and their values to try to create a small locus of peace in the world they corrupted, Kuzen proved another world was possible – the world that his friends and pupils are struggling to create now.

Kaiko realises the connection when Yomo mentions Anteiku, and much like Furuta’s criticism of Kaneki in the preceding chapter, Kaiko’s criticism reveals much more of his own flaws than those of his enemies. He can only see the world through a lens of manipulation and domination, and since his foes aren’t controlled by him, he assumes they must be controlled by Kuzen. He fails to understand their individuality and independence of thought and action, inspired by Kuzen rather than manipulated by him.

Kaiko’s obsession with the order of the herd is seen in his frequent use of the ‘we’ pronoun, referring to the collective interests of V. This is in stark contrast to the selfish Furuta, whom Kaiko naturally did not get along with – particularly in regards to his bad manners, which defy Kaiko’s orderliness and propriety.

The uniform faceless mass of black hats, coats and katanas that makes up V emphasises this collective, with Kaiko acting as the spokesman of the whole. He cannot stand rebels. Even now he resents Kuzen for breaking from the collective, disrupting its perfect unity, and still wishes to force him back into it. In fact, nearly every time we see Kaiko he’s mulling over Kuzen. That’s one hell of an axe to grind.

In the first, he joyously proclaims that Kuzen’s rebellion has come to nought, laying his anxieties at rest, while in the background Kaneki and Eto, the successors of Kuzen’s legacy, talk; thereby proving Kaiko wrong. In the second, his frustration is so great he breaks even his own rule of manners by swearing at the effect of Kuzen’s legacy in fermenting rebellion and disturbing his ‘peace’.

But his paranoia is justified – that single act of rebellion has caused his entire house of cards to come tumbling down. In the first series’ final arc, V’s control seems an unbreakable birdcage.

It’s implied in this scene that V orchestrated the Anteiku Raid to punish Kuzen’s insubordination, placing their well-polished heel firmly over Kuzen’s head. But in the final arc of :re, it’s Kuzen’s legacy that triumphs over V, and as for their birdcage…

Eto reveals the fragility of their seemingly solid control in the panels below. It rests precariously on a balance that is bound to eventually be overturned by the legions of oppressed beneath it, both the ghouls being slaughtered and the humans tricked into an endless war.

The return of Eto, as Kuzen’s child, is the most explicit symbol of the triumph of Kuzen’s legacy. Kaiko even refers to her as ‘Yoshimura’.

The importance both of Kuzen and Eto herself in this arc reflects their significance in the Anteiku Raid. Eto was the first major destabilising element created by Kuzen’s disloyalty, and Kaiko directly attributes Eto’s actions to Kuzen:

So Eto’s victory over V is Kuzen’s victory as well, and like him, this chapter she has finally broken free from their control.

The spectre of revolution has long been coming for V, and Kuzen’s small disruption of the system has led to its full-scale collapse.